Framed for Treason
by Prince Zombie Frog
Summary: Merlin is set up and Arthur catches him trying to heal Gwen with magic but gets the wrong idea.What will happen when Merlin is in hiding while an evil sorcerer threatens to overthrow Arthur?Can Merlin save Camelot from the one who framed him?-and more importantly, how did this happen?Better than it sounds, canon pairings, two parter T for violence (and language?)
1. Chapter 1

**I know I should be updating on my other stories but I'm having some difficulty with writers block plus lots of plot bunnies chasing after me so here's a Merlin two parter that I've almost finished but need to make up an ending for...basically an idea that got out of hand and I need to put to rest before I can continue- be warned there may be more short stories appearing before my mind is clear enough to continue with my PT stuff.**

**[no real parings but I guess there is some Arwen since they are married here] Set just after series 4 (when Merlin was happier;( I miss his smile) and Lancelot is dead...sorry. Make sure to read past the intro- the writing gets batter.**

**I don't own Merlin blahblahblah. Hope you enjoy the fanfic!**

* * *

Merlin sprinted through the woods, barely paying attention to the braches that tore at him in passing nor his stumbling steps as tears clouded his eyes, panicked breaths rushed out of him leaving no air for him to sob. He quickly made his way to a small clearing before a large cave, only then did he stop to bend over, gulping down mouthfuls of air before standing straight and looking about him.

His heart pounded in his ears making it hard to concentrate on any possible threats while his eyes remained wide as if trying to absorb the surrounding trees in a glance. Moments passed and suddenly he had no energy left, the powerful warlocks knees buckled and shook making him fall onto his back, the landing causing him more breathing problems and a spinning headache.

Slowly Merlin brought his hands up to his eyes to press his palms over them, whether it was to calm his pounding head or stop his tears he neither knew nor cared. How could he have been so stupid!? So, so STUPID! To fall for such an obvious trap- _HOW COULD HE BE SO STUPID!_ Sobs racked through him as he remembers the look on Arthurs face, the confusion and hurt followed by the absolute hate and disgust- the worst thing was his eyes, they were uncaring, cruel and accusing but there was pain as well, so much pain.

And to top it all off, Arthur hated him for something he never did.

Merlin was accused of cursing Gwen.

* * *

The sorcerer had appeared weeks back, confronting Merlin in a corridor one night before merging into the shadows, he should have told someone right then what he had seen but he believed that he could prevent the man from causing any harm on his own, how foolish. The servant started noticing things around the castle: symbols carved into doors, rumours of strange things walking about in the night, Gwen nervously staring at something behind him when he spoke to her before rushing him to another part of the castle, even Arthur was giving him odd glances (although he hadn't paid much attention to those- unfortunately) and in a few days he believed that the sorcerer had been targeting Gwen in order to get to Arthur. He had been blocking every attempt without being caught, he had never thought that these attempts were all fake or that the real target was him, he was tricked, believing that he had been clever in finding the poultice under Gwens pillow he had spoken the words that would reverse the enchantment and stuffed it back under the pillow so that it could begin healing the queen and returning the energy it had taken from her, he had even smiled as he turned- only to be greeted with Excalibur and a betrayed looking king. Suddenly he no longer felt so clever.

"It was you..." Arthur whispered harshly, still not quite believing his eyes. "This is what you've been up to for the past few days?...this is why Guinevere had your scarf!? It was you!?"

The warlock choked unable to answer his king as shock and confusion clouded his eyes, he had no idea that one of his scarfs had been found with Gwen the other day. Something didn't fit with the way Arthur was addressing the situation, it was almost like the king had actually followed him just to see this, that he _knew_ Merlin would be here doing magic but that wasn't right otherwise he'd know that Merlin was trying to _cure_ not curse.

Merlin was pulled from his thoughts as Arthurs blade pushed him back into the wall, gleaming threateningly above his heart. The servant looked to the sleeping queen before returning to Arthur.

"W-What!?"

"How long have you been planning against us? Have you been lying all these years just to gain our trust? To fool us?! WHY MERLIN!?" the blond man shook but his eyes were almost begging Merlin to say something- anything- that could prove him wrong.

"I-I-I no- No! I would never- I don't- what are you talking about!?" Merlin breathed, finding it hard to form a sentence under the circumstances.

According to his friends darkening expression this was the wrong thing to say, "You cursed her! You _cursed_ Guinevere with _magic_! Sorcerer!"

His blood ran cold. "No..."

"Don't deny it I saw you enchanting that thing under her pillow- your eyes turned _gold_ Merlin..." there was a dangerous tone to Arthurs' voice now and his eyes no longer flickered with confusion.

They stood for a few seconds as Merlin tried to find the words he needed.

"No! Arth-"

"DON'T YOU DARE- don't you dare say my name as if you were my _friend_!"

The two fell into silence, tears began to form in Merlin's eyes but he refused to let them fall. How had it come to this? After so many years of trying to convince Arthur that magic wasn't evil, after waiting for the opportune moment to finally tell his secret he had to watch as it all came undone.

But how?

It was then he saw the shadow in the corner of the room, the sorcerer smiled from under his hood as he waved one of Merlins' scarfs mockingly before fading into darkness. He tensed, anger and sorrow coursing through him as a single tear left him.

He had been framed.

His eyes returned to his kings, ice blue irises that once sparkled with mocking affection now burned with hate and distrust, he lowered his head and shut his eyes.

Confusion sparked in Arthur when Merlin lifted his head to give a sad defeated smile and weary eyes.

"...I'm sorry...I have failed you..."

With a flash of gold and a yell for the guards the king was unconscious and Merlin was an outlaw on the run. And with one verbal spell the whole castle guard and the kingdom knew his secret.

He never said goodbye to Gaius...

* * *

Arthur groaned as he woke, pushing himself off the floor to clutch at his head. _Ouch._

Opening his eyes the young king furrowed his brow in confusion, why was he sleeping on the floor? And where was-

Merlin.

Everything that had happened rushed into his mind: his servant sneaking off and doing strange things behind his back, the odd carvings in doorways that Gaius had found, Merlin supposedly cleaning the kings room when Arthur had seen him lingering around the physicians quarters before sneaking off to market with some herbs, Gwen glancing around worriedly, Leon finding Merlins' neckerchief beside an unconscious Gwen, the poultice under her bed...Melins' eyes burning with magic.

He felt sick, no idea what he should be feeling after discovering this new side of Merlin. Arthur had always known that his friend had been hiding something from him since their second meeting but this was too much, Merlin: the loyal, foolish, idiotic, country-bumpkin was a sorcerer- _a sorcerer._

When did this happen? Why was he in Camelot? When did he start planning against him? _Why_ did he start planning against him? Why Gwen? Had they ever truly been friends or was everything for the past five years a lie?

_'...I'm sorry...I have failed you...'_

Why did he say that?!

Arthur sighed and stood up feeling completely drained despite the magically induced sleep he had...Merlin knocked him out... with magic...he felt a headache form behind his eyes as he sighed in defeat. He knew that as soon as he got his strength back he'd be furious but right now all he wanted was to check on Gwen and get some rest, possibly use his exhausted state to think about what Merlins' reasons could be before he was blinded by anger.

The tired blond made his way to Gwen side to see what damage the curse had done (he could feel anger building in him already), since being found unconscious his wife had become feverish and unusually pale, her eyes had been an unnatural shade of grey for the short time that she had been awake but delirium prevented Arthur from asking her any questions, later on purple and black veins had appeared all over her skin and breathing was painfully slow. If this new poultice had taken affect he dreaded to think of the results.

Arthur breathed deeply before looking at her. He then slumped to the floor in shock grasping at her hand.

Gwens' skin was the same chocolate shade that it had been for years, clear of any purple or black veins that had been there before, her breathing was at a calm steady pace and her temperature had lowered although still very warm. She was recovering- and quickly!

The king let out a light laugh, shock and happiness pushing out his previous anger. He leaned over, resting his head on the side of the bed with closed eyes for a moment before something seemed to urge him to look down, there on the floor was the poultice he had seen Merlin using. Tentatively he picked up the small bundle to examine it, what could this mean? Had the bundle fallen out when he found Merlin? Did the curse not work? Maybe it needed to be renewed?

_...Maybe it had healed Gwen?_

Arthur quickly shook such optimistic thoughts from his head, he had seen his servants' behaviour over the past week and none of it shouted innocent not to mention the man had used magic to escape- why would he escape if he wasn't guilty?

_Maybe because someone was poking him with a sword!_

Once again Arthur shoved the voice away (it sounded too much like Merlin) and made his way out of the room. Merlin had done this...he must have- what didn't make sense was why? Why after all these years?

_How about the fact that his kind are executed by yours- or the number of times that you mentioned your hatred of sorcerers? Not to mention the man hunts that you would drag him on and Morgana ...Morgana?...oh no._

_ What if he had only just been corrupted?_

Arthur stopped in the middle of the hall feeling like his heart had just been stabbed. Had he done this? Had he driven Merlin away to the point of no return? Just as his father had pushed Morgana? He swiftly slammed a fist into a wall as Merlins' last words echoed around his head.

_'...I'm sorry...I have failed you...'_

Arthur sunk to the floor, clenching his injured hand.

They had both failed, and now...Merlin was gone.

* * *

Gwen had not taken the news well; she had refused to believe Merlins' betrayal and accused Arthur of turning his back on him. It seemed by the time Arthur had come to the whole of Camelot was searching for the kings servant, after the guards had arrived Merlin had cast several spells in order to escape making it impossible to deny his powers. The king had told Gaius first when he showed him the poultice, the old man seemed to drain away with the news that his ward was now to be hunted for such a crime but Arthur noticed that he did not seem shocked to learn Merlins' secret, this could have been because the he was too saddened to react but the king doubted it.

All of his council had agreed that Merlin was to be captured and sentenced as soon as possible, Arthur found it hard to squash the voice in his head that begged him to stop this but he did, Merlin was no longer his friend that much was obvious so as both king and Gwens' husband he was compelled to have the man captured and most likely executed...if it came to that he would make sure it was quick and private, at least to honour the memory of his friend if nothing else.

The knights had been quiet since the incident, no longer able to handle the situation without divided loyalties. Gwaine had taken to drinking alone in his chamber and refused to talk to anyone or look Arthur in the eye, the rogue knight didn't seem to believe that the servant was guilty but after witnessing his magic was clueless at how to prove his innocence. The others carried out their duties but glared at any who spoke too harshly of their friend as well as shouting down at any who spoke of killing said servant on sight; there was to be a fair trial before Merlin was truly condemned.

Over all the whole of Camelot was tense, emotions bubbling under the surface as rumour and suspicion circled the town. Three days after Merlin had disappeared Arthur, Gwen and the knights gathered to have a meeting...only to find a cloaked Merlin sitting on the throne with a dark threatening smile on his lips as the doors slammed shut.

"Good morning, _you're Majesty_"

* * *

After a whole day of guilt and anger, it had taken Merlin another two to reach Camelot without being spotted by any of the patrols out looking for him (he didn't think arriving on the supposedly dead dragon would help his case). He knew he had to get back and stop whatever the man who had framed him was planning, before it was too late, hopefully he'd be able to prove his innocence at the same time.

His clothes were filthy with lack of care since the warlock had left his home refusing to waste time on such things while his friends were in danger, although hiding behind the last few trees in front of Camelot's gates it seemed that his dirty clothes could be a blessing in disguise since the dirt covered his very recognisable and overly bright shirt and scarf. Whether it would be enough was another question, it looked like the guard were on high alert and there were definitely more there than usual although since Merlin had no need to hide his talents any more he could just distract them. Maybe a small explosion?-

**BOOM!**

...may be that had been too much.

The armoured soldiers ran over to a huge crater a few feet away from the walls that guarded their city, not noticing the grubby ex-servant darting through the gates and into the crowd as they inspected the purple smoke rising from the charred earth. Merlin grinned happily to himself as he skipped around a corner and checked that none had seen him, after a few minutes he nodded in satisfaction and turned around.

Two large guards were staring straight at him with their swords aimed at the sorcerers heart and throat barely a hairs width from his pale skin, both looking very menacing to the skinny young man. There was a moment were they were silent while he took in his situation.

"...Damn"

* * *

"Mer-!"

Before Arthur could finish he and his friends were lifted off their feet and slammed against different pillars as vines wrapped tightly around them. The sorcerers' eyes returned to their original blue yet they seemed to have gotten darker since the king had last seen them, Merlin slunk off the throne with ease as he surveyed the room and his prisoners before returning his cold mocking gaze to Arthur. The blond was speechless at his ex-servants behaviour and he didn't seem to be the only one, all of the knights (even Gwaine) looked like they had lost their ability to voice their thoughts at that moment.

"I thought I'd pop-in and see how your all doing" Merlin smirked knowingly before sending Gwen a sly grin that made Arthurs skin crawl, "I'm happy to see you looking so well Gwen- I _am_ sorry about the whole cursing thing by the way..."

The sorcerer no longer reminded them of the king's clumsy kind servant friend but a cruel and calculating warlord of great power, it was as if the man was a snake watching its' prey before striking. Arthurs mind went numb as he realised that _this _was who Merlin had become, this crazed sadistic man was his servant, his _friend_...or at least he had been.

"What happened to you, Merlin?..."

The tall sorcerer turned slowly to look at his captive, there was an odd glint in his eye that Arthur couldn't place. Merlin walked closer to him until they were almost nose to nose before replying, reminding Arthur of Morgana all those years ago.

"_Merlin_ is gone, _I_ am Emrys" There was no smile or jest in the sorcerers tone anymore, "And I will be the one to return magic to this land once and for all"

"You're wrong."

Everyone looked over to Gwaine, his head was bowed and yet his voice still held his old confidence, Merlin- or Emrys- cocked his head to the side as a smile once again spread across his face.

"Really? I was so sure this time!" the cloaked man chuckled.

"Merlin isn't gone!" The knight growled as he glared "I don't know what you've done with him, but magic or no magic if you don't bring him back I will cut your lying throat!"

"Lying? But I'm a terrible liar, don't you agree Leon?" Leon kept his expression neutral but refused to answer, Merlin grinned. "No? Percival?, Elyan?, Gwen? Surely you can answer?" none of them made a sound.

"You're highness?" he did not turn to see Arthurs resigned features.

"Merlin, this isn't you. Please see reason, it is not too late to turn back" Leon's eyes bored down into Merlin's, "You are not Morgana, you know that..."

The knights' words were lost on the sorcerer as he moved to take his place on the throne. "You know I think I'm going to like having my own kingdom, people could clean _my _room and do everything I tell them for once,I could have you all burned at the stake! Although..." there was a gasp and suddenly Gwen was kneeling at the sorcerer's feet.

"Gwen!"

"Guinevere!" Elyan and Arthur tugged helplessly at their restraints while Emrys leaned forward to cup the queens' cheek, ignoring her flinch.

"...every king needs a queen- Guinevere how would you like to become my queen?"

* * *

"Please! I'm telling you Athurs' in danger, he needs my help! You have to listen to me!"

Merlin struggled helplessly in the two guards grasp as they dragged him along, unable to see through the blindfold tied tightly over his eyes the guards remained silent not once loosening their grip on the bound warlocks arms as they guided him to their destination, Merlin was beginning to regret not knocking them out on the spot.

After being found by the large men the warlock had only a moment before they were on him and clamping his wrists in irons while the other covered his eyes, all attempts of magic seemed useless against whatever power was in the manacles which had forced him to begging to be let go- something he wasn't very fond of.

A painful whack on the head silenced him before he could carry on with his please. "Be quiet before I gag you, I'm sure the king will be more interested in what you have to say than I am..."

The warlock perked at mention of his friend. They were taking him to Arthur? Maybe he could still make this work!...If only his head would stop spinning...

* * *

Gwens' gasp echoed around the silent hall, hanging over all of them like an ominous cloud. Arthur shook with rage, he was completely helpless against the sorcerers magic while Gwen was too close to danger for comfort, he could no longer tell whether he was angry because of Merlins' betrayal, at being helpless to stop him or that it was most likely his own fault all of this was happening.

Emrys didn't seem bothered by the atmosphere around him; his gaze still lingering on the kneeling queens' shocked expression as he sniggered lightly.

"Don't be so shocked my queen, I have admired you for quite some time but have been unable to...voice such opinions." The sorcerer leaned forward until he was almost nose-to-nose with Gwen, still too frozen in shock to move away, a wicked grin appeared on Merlin's face like a grotesque mask.

"Why don't we seal it with a kiss? I have always wondered what it would be like to kiss you and it would be a first for the two of us..."

Gwen blinked and Arthur could have sworn he saw hope in her eyes as the sorcerer pulled her towards him.

"You're not Merlin."

Emrys halted for a moment before sighing, "I thought we already settled this-"

The queen jolted out of his hold to glare at him in determination, "No! You are not Merlin- you never were!"

All the knights looked to one another as something close to joy seeped into them, this man wasn't Merlin?

The sorcerer huffed out, angrily clenching his fists before relaxing, as if he had been relieved of a burden. "Ah, you got me but I guess that I would have been found out soon enough"

There was a bang as the large double doors flew open to reveal two butch guards dragging someone towards them.

Not-Merlin stood up with a grin, leaving Gwen behind to make his way toward the guards and their prisoner, "Ah! How nice of you to finally join us"

Arthurs eyes went wider than he thought possible when he saw the muddy figure bound and blindfolded before him thrown to the ground, grunting in pain as their head smacked the stone floor.

The prisoner shook his head slowly as he weakly attempted to lift it towards the voice addressing him. Emrys' expression turned dark at the boys movements.

"Merlin..."

* * *

He could have sworn someone had said his name but his head was swimming and the fall hadn't helped at all, swallowing down the sickly feeling he tilted his head to try and locate the voice.

"Arthur?" maybe he could explain himself before the sorcerer took action, but first he had to do something about those manacles around his wrists...

Something hard slammed twice into his ribs making him choke as he tried to swallow air back into his lungs, there were shouts all around him and he could have sworn he heard Arthur in the mix but that wouldn't make sense- and did Arthur just hit him? The same foot pushed him on his back before pressing on his shoulder but Merlin refused to back down.

"A-Arthur?! Plea-" a fist made contact with his face before he could finish his request but as the warlock regained his senses he noticed that his blindfold no longer covered his eyes. Blinking rapidly everything was slowly started to come into focus.

"Now Merlin, don't you know it's rude to speak so freely before your king?" a familiar mocking chuckled from above him.

"Get away from him you coward!" _Was that Gwaine? _Why was _Gwaine_ here?

"Or what? You'll drink all my mead?" A harsh and unnatural laugh could be heard and finally Merlin could focus.

His eyes widened at the figure above him, it would be like looking into a mirror if it wasn't for the cruel expression on the doppelgangers' face. His own features were twisted before him in a way he was sure he couldn't replicate if he tried, the clothes he wore were dark and clean under his night blue cloak, looking closer he could see other differences; the man's hair was longer and much too clean, the eyes were much darker and lacked the flecks of gold that others usually commented on, his skin was close to grey and his canines seemed oddly sharp; overall he was feeling very glad he never got into black magic.

"Well Merlin, don't you have anything to say?" Merlin prickled at the sound of his own voice immediately knowing who this imposter must be.

"Jarken..." the warlock growled as he tried to shove the man off him, before he could react another fist came toward him forcing the side of his face into his attackers boot and his lower lip to start bleeding.

"You will address me as 'sire' you wretch, although I must admit I'm impressed, most sorcerers would be unconscious by now after having Binders placed on them" Jarken laughed at the servant's glare, "Well what did you expect, I couldn't have you using magic in front of your master now could I?"

"You are not my master!" Merlin spat.

"No, I'm your king! But I wasn't talking about me..." with the sorcerers' words Merlin could feel himself going cold- Arthur was here.

With some effort he managed to turn his head to the side for the first time since being dragged through the double doors, there he saw Arthur, Elyan and Percival each tied to pillars by enchanted vines looking his way in worry and anger. He was relieved to see his friends unharmed but by the looks of it Arthur wasn't dealing with the situation well, Merlin guessed that his replica had played around with them before he had arrived. With Arthur, Gwen and the knights trapped and Merlins' magic sealed, this wasn't looking good...

* * *

Arthur stared back at his servant, panic shooting through him when he noticed his friend was getting paler by the second, bruises were beginning to form on his face and his lip and eye would probably be swollen for a day or two. How could he have let this happen? Why didn't he listen to Merlin instead of pushing him away? He should have known that the man would never hurt them but he had been blind...and now his friends would pay for his mistake.

As if reading the king's guilty thoughts, Jarken grabbed a hand full of Merlin's hair and pulled him up to meet his eyes, "Tell me, how it feels to be hated by the man you served for so many years? To be the most powerful creature ever known and be defeated because that man threw you to the dogs!"

Gwaine growled threateningly "You bloody ba-!", one of the guards swung their elbow into the defenceless knights stomach before he could finish.

The warlock remained silent, glaring heatedly at the other while trying to hide any trace of pain, Jarken sneered down at him in disgust.

"Such power and destiny is too great for someone so weak and worthless...I am much more fitting to bring magic back to Camelot than any wretched whores whelp... or Pendragon scum!"

Merlin gave a quiet mocking laugh "Arthur...is ten times the man...you could ever hope to be"

A sinister smirk appeared on Jarkens stolen features, causing many of the knights to shiver in dread as he leaned closer to the young servant, "Then maybe I should follow his example?"

He threw Merlin back to the ground, the pale warlock hissing when his head connected with stone, the dark sorcerer turned and summoned a thin pillar of stone from the floor before Jarken clicked his fingers and gestured towards his two goons. "Break and pile any unnecessary tables and chairs around this pillar and tie the warlock to it, Pendragon can have one more magical being before he is overthrown."

Arthur looked at him in horror, "no..."

Arthur and the knights looked to each other in panic, Gwen shaking even as the vines forced her down on to her thrown. Merlin, to exhausted and sickly to comprehend the situation properly, did nothing to stop the guards as he was dragged and tied tightly to the stone pyre, not noticing how the markings on Merlin's manacles started to flicker with golden light. Jarken sunk into Arthurs thrown, a satisfied look on his (well Merlin's) face while keeping his eyes on Merlin.

"After all, you do admire him so. It's only fitting that you die by his laws."

Merlin looked up dully in an attempt to fight back but only managed to level his head to glare through his fringe at the other sorcerer, Jarken held his gaze.

"Someone like you deserves no less. Only a true monster would betray their own kind for their executioner and you are the biggest traitor of them all _Emrys_...now burn like all those you abandoned for your king!"

"Merlin is **not** a _monster_!" Elyon and Percival shouted, Leon, Gwaine and Arthur too angry to speak.

The last few pieces of wood were tossed at Merlin, one piece bouncing off his head heavily. Gwen looked pleadingly towards her husband for some way out of this; Arthur tried to give a reassuring smile while his eyes flickered around the room for some sort of inspiration. A golden glow from Merlin's direction almost made Arthur shout for Jarken to stop before he saw that the glow was not from a flame but the markings on his servants 'Binders'. Quickly forming a plan he signalled to Leon who nodded and motioned for the others to look to Merlin's hands; the sparks and glowing light emitted from the ruins beginning to become more intense...

* * *

**There, hope you liked it and please tell me what you think! This story might actuall ybe finished at some point- if not I'll put an AN up to allow someone to adopt it but we'll see...if the world is still intact.**

**Love to all those who watch and review my stories, sorry I am such a lazy writter .**

**Byebye~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's the second part, enjoy!**

* * *

Arthur nodded to his wife discreetly before directing his gaze to the man in _his_ thrown, "What sort of man are you to judge!? You say that Merlin has betrayed those with magic but I don't see him tying _you_ to a pyre."

"Oh, '_great' king_ it is not that simple- I once believed that our time would come again, where Emrys would rise and change all of Albion for the better but instead of fighting for _our_ freedom... he chose to fight for _you_, a man who would sooner kill then learn the ways of magic! Tell me, if you had learnt of his magic before my appearance would you have accepted the boy or slay him where he stood?"

Arthur went quiet, unsure how to answer the question without telling a complete lie; his first reaction to Merlin's 'betrayal' was evidence enough that he couldn't trust himself not to harm Merlin for having magic but in order for his plan to succeed Jarken needed to be distracted long enough for Merlin to escape.

"The only magic I have seen has been dark and destructive used by sorcerers like you; Merlin on the other hand...has shown me more than that"

_At least I hope he will if we get through this..._ Arthur added mentally.

* * *

The glowing marks of Merlins cuffs were starting to become white with heat, the warlock shuffled slightly, becoming more aware of the disturbance in his magic and the metal around his wrists heating up to painful levels. He leaned over and tried to look over his shoulder, feeling incredibly stupid when his first thought was '_how did they tie my hands behind the pyre without undoing the binders?'_ instead of '_OH LORD MY BINDERS ARE CATCHING FIRE!'_- or something like that. The cruel metal was glowing brighter now, Merlin bit down on his lip to avoid screaming, if his magic could melt the binds he might be able to stop Jarken from harming the others.

* * *

"If that was all it took to free magic then why not sooner? In fact- he could have stopped the slaughter years ago if he had just taken the thrown! But that no longer matters- with this face I will rule over the kingdom as the saviour of all things magical and give people like you the life of misery you deserve." Jarken smirked.

"I don't- wait- what does having _Merlin's_ face have to do with anything? I mean it's Merlin!" Arthur growled, frustrated at his inability to make sense of the situation as well as his friends actions. The king vaguely noticed the real Merlin lifting his just enough to send a withering glare, giving Arthur the distinct feeling that his servant was probably thinking 'Prat!'... even if this wasn't the best time for such things, seeing a bit of spark in the skinny sorcerers eyes cheered him up greatly.

Jarken sighed irritably, "Because, Pendragon, this boy has a lot of allies who would probably kill me if they found out he was dead- not to mention the number of druids that would be on my tail for 'messing up destiny'. By using this face I am now Emrys; the one who will bring a new age to Camelot, not Jarken the man who broke the prophesies "

"So in other words you're scared that not everyone will be on your side and decided that hiding your cowardly face behind mine would make things better?"

Jarken jerked at the sound of Merlin's voice, standing quickly when he saw the warlock stepping away from the make-shift pyre with only one wrist still wrapped in metal, the other holding a large ball of fire towards the evil sorcerer. Merlin grinned weakly, cocking an eyebrow and tilting his head as the last of his bindings snapped and dropped to the floor revealing harsh burns around his wrists. He sighed.

"Is it so hard to admit that you were just jealous of my charming good looks?"

Immediately Jarken and his henchmen sprung into action; the sorcerer leaping behind the first stone pillar he could find while the two large men lunged at Merlin's back. The warlock swiftly dodged out of the way and threw the flaming ball towards Jarken, clipping the sorcerers arm just as he jumped behind the pillar causing him to yelp and growl at the burn, skipped away from the guards once more and quickly muttered a spell in Leon's general direction. The vines around the tall knight wilted and died, allowing for him to break free and slam the first henchman in the face-first onto the stone floor before un-sheathing his sword and releasing Gwaine. The rogue knight grinned and leapt onto the back of the second henchman just as he went for Merlin while Leon continued to cut the other knights free, Merlin rushing towards the thrones to release Gwen from her binds.

Just as the light faded from the servants eyes he was pushed away by a gust of air and slammed into the wall behind, dazed he shook his head and looked up just as Jarken lunged for his throat, he rolled away but Jarken flung his cloak over the warlocks face and pulled him back to the ground, snarling as he locked his arm around the boys neck.

"Don't underestimate me you little runt!"

Merlin grunted his eyes flashing towards one of the wall hangings beside them "Right back at you!"

The red and gold fabric wrapped itself around Jarken's head making him yell in shock as he let go of Merlin to tug the material away. The servant turned back and smiled at the disgruntled sorcerer once the wall hanging was flung to the ground.

"You'll pay for that boy..." using Merlin's injured body to his advantage, Jarken grabbed the others throat before he could move out of the way and hissed out a spell, burning the flesh beneath his hand before punching the Warlock in the face and letting him fall to the floor.

"Merlin!" Without a thought Arthur rushed over to his friend, swinging his sword down towards the enemy with a yell. Jarken rolled out of the way just in time, wiping off the dirt from his precious cloak as he rose; looking around he saw all of the knights poised for attack, the two henchmen now dead on the floor.

While Jarken was distracted Arthur glanced back to Merlin; the warlock groaned as he stood up, rubbing his burnt throat subconsciously, hissing when a cough ripped at his raw wind-pipe.

"Are you alright?"

The servant gave him an unbelieving look. "M' thr't jus' 'ot b'rnt an' m' wrist fell l'ke they're on f're...- Wha' d'you think!"

The king winced slightly in sympathy before giving an apologetic smile as Merlin coughed dryly and turning back to Jarken, the sorcerer had yet to make his move after being surrounded but Arthur doubted that he would give up that easily. The dark sorcerer straightened up and brushed down his clothes gracefully, smirking confidently at the monarch as he folded his arms over his chest, the action was too similar to Merlin acting smug for Arthur's liking- watching this altered version of his servant's appearance acting only slightly different was getting creepy.

"Well I must say I wasn't expecting this, well done boy you're not as useless as I thought" Jarken sneered at Merlin before speaking directly to Arthur and chuckling "Do you really think you and your pretty knights can defeat me? It takes more than steal and bravery to kill a sorcerer!"

"May be he can't?" Merlin croaked. Jarken stopped chuckling at looked up over to the warlock, Merlin glared at the doppelganger "But I can..."

Jarken grinned "We'll see about that"

* * *

Both immediately sprang into action, Jarken launching a ball of energy while Merlin pushed Arthur away and redirected the spell towards a wall as he shot a bolt of lightning. Smirking, the sorcerer lifted his cloak quickly over his face as the bolt hit him; static crackled around him but soon seeped into the blue material, forming into ruins that rippled on the surface. Merlin stepped back in shock; he had never known that materials could be made to absorb a magical attack, using the warlocks shock to his advantage and releasing the spell back at him. Noticing the danger Arthur yanked Merlin to the side, the side of his face burning slightly as the spell whizzed past only missing him by a finger length.

"This is no time for daydreaming, Merlin!" Arthur growled as Gwaine attempted a side attack.

The rogue knight plunged his sword toward the sorcerers stomach, almost landing a blow but Jarken managed to step back just in time, the blade slicing through his cloak instead. Jarken growled at the damage to his cape and quickly flung Gwaine back into Percival with magic before rushing to the nearest exit, Merlin dashed after him ignoring any warnings from the others as he chased the sorcerer through the castle, apologising to a few terrified and confused servants that dived out of their way.

* * *

"Great, now we have to chase them both!" Arthur grumbled before running after his thoughtless servant. He soon came across a stunned maid who was gaping like a fish having forgotten the broken vase on the floor, Arthur quickly asked which way she had seen Merlin go and the servant merely pointed towards the court yard before the king and his knights rushed in that direction, Gwen stopping for a moment to apologise to her then following.

"Leon, send word to the guards to not attack Merlin. Close all entrances to Camelot and get the people to safety. No one is to go near the sorcerer or Merlin without further orders understood?" Arthur called over his shoulder. "Elyan, go with him and help the towns people"

"Yes, sire!" Leon and Elyan darted down a separate corridor as the rest followed the sounds of smashing and running up ahead.

"Gotta hand it to him...Merlin can run _fast_!" Gwaine panted with a cheeky grin.

* * *

Spells bounced around the hallways as the sorcerer and warlock stampeded through the castle, one throwing curses at both his pursuer and passersby while the other focused on deflecting spells and using the wall decorations or furniture to block the others path. At the top of a flight of stairs Jarken jumped and propelled himself forward, landing smoothly at the bottom of the steps before shoving a maid out of his way and running to the courtyard while Merlin cursed as he stumbled behind, only just staying on his feet as he followed.

Merlin watched Jarken running towards the town and quickly looked around for a way to stop him, his eyes landed on a small pile of wood beside the gates, focusing on them his eyes flashed gold as time slowed and the logs lined up end-by-end across the gateway.

Releasing his hold on time Merlin used all his concentration on his next spell, "Foerbernan!"

Jarken reeled back as his escape root was suddenly blocked by a wall of fire, he growled and spun around to face Merlin once more, hatred and scorn evident on his stolen face even as he smiled. "I have to wonder how Camelot will reward your efforts if you succeed, do you think they'd poor oil on your pyre to shorten your suffering?"

Merlin said nothing as they approached each other slowly. Jarken cackled.

"Nay, they would never even see _you_ as their saviour" he drawled "They would be say that _brave_ King Arthur and his _noble_ knights killed the evil sorcerer and managed to capture the _treacherous_ servant boy who had been plotting against them all this time- ha! The stories that people come up with..."

The warlock continued to glare at him, unable to bring himself to say that Jarken was wrong but unwilling to show such doubts. Once they were an arms length from each other they stopped; Merlin standing straight and stiff with his hands twitching at his side while his doppelganger leaned his weight on one leg, arms crossed and shoulders relaxed.

Jarken shook his head mockingly and continued with a smirk "You try so hard but I can see it in your eyes, face it Emrys you've been living a lie, we know that Camelot will never accept you" Merlin's eyes darted away for a moment and his fists clenched as the sorcerer leered "The king speaks of _change_ and _forgiveness_ but there will never be room in his heart for magic. Why after all these years would he ever forsake the road that Uther has laid down for him?"

Merlin's steady gaze returned to Jarkens "Because he is not Uther and a good man"

The cloaked sorcerer snorted "He's a Pendragon! And you are a fool to think otherwise, Emrys. After all you did for him he was very quick to accuse you over a few minor occurrences" slowly Jarken stepped closer offering a hand to the servant as he whispered "He is not worthy of you. You know it in your heart that you do not belong by his side. Return to your kind, join with me and be seen for who you truly are without fear or doubt. Live in a world that you could only ever dream of...a world that you have waited for since the day you were born..."

Looking at his own face and hearing his own voice speaking to him in this way sent a strange chill down Merlin's spine; it was almost as if it were his inner thoughts were stood before him to tempt him with his deepest desires while unveiling his uncertainty, it scared him how much he wanted to accept the offer but after everything that had happened his thoughts were still on edge. Swallowing thickly he pushed away his emotions, looking to the floor as he stepped back with only a twinge of regret as pride and anger rushed through him. Once more his eyes looked into Jarkens with a new fire.

'_The world that I dream of is not ruled by fear and tyranny! I won't be fooled by lies from a man who cares so little for the lives of others!'_

"I will not betray Camelot!" he cried allowed before launching his first attack...

* * *

The king and the rest of the round table finally made it to the court yard standing still when they saw Merlin standing in front of Jarken, the dark sorcerer speaking words that they could not hear as he held his hand out for the other to shake. The servant didn't move as the other spoke his eyes seemed to be looking at something untouchable, Arthur felt his stomach clench when he noticed how his friends' brow creased slightly as his right hand twitched; although it was barely visable he knew the man long enough to see when he was conflicted or swayed by others, the king had been the cause of that look many times over the years and it worried him. Whatever Jarken had said was pushing his friend towards a ledge and even if all went well Arthur was unnerved by how close to the edge Merlin really was.

It came as no surprise however when the warlock backed away and declared his loyalty to Camelot- the idiot was _way_ too stubborn to change his priorities that quickly! Arthur allowed a flicker of a smile to grace his lips before signalling the others to spread out as the battle began.

* * *

Merlin rolled as yet another green mist was fired at where he had previously stood, panting as he shouted out another spell and launched Jarken back with a beam of light, growling and ducking as the main impact of the spell was absorbed by the others enchanted cloak and reflected back. Although he had managed to land a few heavy blows on Jarken the sorcerer was using the fabric to absorb most attacks while Merlin was receiving more injuries but from less powerful spells, they were both weak but Jarkens ability to absorb and reflect attacks gave him the upper hand.

The warlock was running out of spells that he thought would penetrate the blasted cloak but at least it seemed that Jarken was beginning to slow down, some movement caught his attention and he saw Gwen trying to get an unfortunate maid to safety just to his left, Merlin snapped his attention back to his opponent hoping that they had not spotted what had distracted him but it was in vein. Jarkens eyes lit up with delight and looking Merlin square in the eyes he fired a blot of lightening towards the queen and servant...

* * *

Noticing the sorcerers shift in attention Arthur's eyes widened and he dashed forwards in a hopeless attempt to reach her in time only to be forced to shield his eyes as a flash of light blinded him.

"Guenivere!" his yell was drowned out by the echoing booms of the spell.

Blinking rapidly the king looked up; to his relief found that both his wife and the maid were unharmed and unaware of having been in any danger as they rushed into the castle. With a sigh his eyes searched for the form of his servant, only to find him face down and smoke rising from the burn on his back.

"Merlin!" Instantly the king dashed forwards, kneeling beside his friend and grabbing a hold of his shoulder as he looked for any signs of life in Merlin's face. Merlin groaned and opened his eyes but was unable to do more than shift his arms before hissing in pain, the burn on his back was raw and red stretching from his left shoulder blade to just below the centre of his back and his shirt now had a large singed hole making it useless. Concerned for his friend Arthur didn't notice when Jarken crept up behind him with a sword₁ before Merlin reached up and rolled them to the side, crying out in agony as his injury hit the floor.

Arthur jumped to his feet easily blocking Jarkens next lunge and parrying it with his own attack which was quickly dodged. The two men moved swidtly around one another, trading blows and blocking any attack coming their way, Jarken hissed at the king while Arthur ignored how Merlin's twisted features directed at him tugged at something inside him or how wrong it felt to be seriously fighting the someone with his servants looks. Arthur leaned back from a wild swing at his chest, seeing a perfect opening and thrusting his sword deep into Jarkens ribcage.

The sorcerer gagged and dropped his sword while his body shivered, slumping forward but never once did his gaze leave the young kings even as his blood splattered on the ground and stained his dry lips. Grimacing through the pain he glared heatedly at Arthur before spluttering his last words, a crooked smile forced over his words "Sl-eep well...P-Pen...dra-gon!..."

The king jerked his sword out and stared at the body as it fell to the ground, his skin crawling knowing that image wasn't going to fade from his memory for a long time. For a moment he waited for Jarken's appearance to change, expecting the spell to wear off once the sorcerer had died, after a few moments it became disturningly clear that the spell was not going to wear off anytime soon and the king briskly marched away from the corpse double of his unconscious friend who was no being checked over by Percival and Gwaine.

Looking up to their king they both listened carefully for their next orders, "Take him to Gaius and make sure he doesn't leave before a speak with the council, have the guards collect the body and burn it"

The knights nodded and relaxed slightly having been worried that Merlin would be sent to the dungeons and feeling relief at not having to deal with the body. Real or not, Merlin's corpse was something that they didn't want to handle...

* * *

It was many nights later that Merlin finally woke up. He blinked in confusion and looked around his small room before his eyes landed on the open floor board by his bed.

He promptly fainted.

* * *

An hour later and he was conscious again, feeling sick, tired, painful and nervous as he remembered the fight with Jarken and all that passed before that. He feared what Arthur might say once he saw him in the day but for now he closed his eyes and tried to settle his mind and work a few things out for himself, shuffling carefully so that he was faced the other way. Opening his eyes for a moment Merlin felt hope rise within him when he saw what was on his bedside table; his father's dragon wood carving standing proudly on top of his book of spells with a small red and gold embroidered cape draped over its back and a pair of Arthurs gloves poking out from underneath.

The no longer secret sorcerer couldn't stop the tears that escaped him as he sobbed and smiled into his pillow before finally succumbing to sleep. He knew tomorrow would be tense and filled with apologies and shouting but he didn't care.

The prat would still listen...

* * *

**₁****_The last spell would have drained a lot of his power, ok? So he used a sword- besides imagine an evil Merlin in a blue cloak wielding a sword like a knight...it was too hard to pass up!_**

* * *

**I'm sorry about the ending- it's so messy! I'll probably change it at some point but I'm really tired and wanted to get this finished, hope you liked it anyway and will review. **

**I will do an epilogue with Arthur and Merlin having a bit of a chat but that might be a while, it depends- but for now this is as much as I can do so it'll be marked as complete! **

**Lots of love to all those who faved/reviewed/followed this story and my stories in general I really don't deserve you guys.**


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